Ten Critical C’s of Perspectivising The Historicism of The English Language In Nigeria

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Ten Critical C’s of Perspectivising The Historicism of The English Language In Nigeria

Ten Critical C’s of Perspectivising The Historicism of The English Language In Nigeria

Mahfouz A Adedimeji

Abstract

From global irrelevance a few centuries back and virtual obscurity in the Nigerian socio-political life about a century and half ago, the English language has metamorphosed not only to the numerouno language in the world but also a medium upon which the survival of many countries, including Nigeria, depends (Adedimeji, 2007). The predominance of English in the Kachruan outer circle of Nigeria and its nullisecondusstatus is predicated on a number of factors such that apart from being the official language and lingua franca of the country, it is also a language that is increasingly attaining an indigenous status. This paper basically overviews the historicism of the English language in Nigeria, and enriches the literature of the subject, through the identification and discussion of ten critical c’s accounting for its advent and nature in the country: Contacts, Commerce, Christianity, Codification, Colonialism, Constitutions, Certification, Commissions, Communication and Contextualisation.

Keywords

Nigerian English; varieties; history; Language Studies; Literary Studies; English and Literature; Humanities

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